Our quantitative analysis of New Testament prohibitions finds, in order of frequency - (1) untruthfulness and deceit, (2) sexual immorality, (3) theft and fraud, (4) coveting / greed / lust. This is true for the New Testament, for Jesus, for Moses ("10 commandments" 7,8,9,10). We have also looked at the high frequency of references for abusive speech, and for quarreling / factionalism, and arrogance / favoritism. This is the "top 7" each having between 40 and 80 New Testament references.
As much as any vice, Jesus does not like hypocrisy, for which there are about 20 NT references in his teaching. And near the end of his ministry, as recorded in Matthew 23, he offers, in the style of an Old Testament prophet, a seven line poem which is a tour de force taking to task in which every stanza attaches hypocrisy to the religious leadership. Jesus is kicking butt and taking names.
υποκριτης - hypocrite, pretender; hypocrisy, pretense, outward show.
Jesus taught... "Beware of practicing your righteousness before others, to be noticed by them." (Matthew 6:1-5) A more serious admonition is offered against judging others. "Do not judge, lest you be judged.... Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite ... first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly." (Mt 7:5, Lk 6:42) And it gets yet more serious, as Jesus takes to task the religious leaders who criticized him for not holding to all of their traditions, or complained about his methods of helping people, such as healing on the Sabbath. "This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me... In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men " (Matthew 15).All of this seems like mere warming up by the time he dresses down the religious leadership in Matthew, chapter 23. He begins by explaining that the Pharisees and religious teachers have placed themselves in the authoritative seat of Moses but that they are bad examples of ethical living. They burden people with a load of religion but fail to help them actually live a godly life. Further, the visible established leaders exhibit self aggrandizement and enjoy honor and preference, failing to exemplify humility in servant leadership. By contrast, Jesus said, "The greatest among you shall be your servant."
Then he offers the seven woes, in the style of the great prophets Amos, Isaiah, or Ezekiel. Each line begins with "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites." I'm hesitant to offer commentary on this poem, preferring rather that it stand on its own in its rhetorical power. In a seven line Hebrew chiastic structure, the middle stanza has prominence. The central stanza of this passage is verse 23-24:
Woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices - mint, dill and cumin... but you have neglected the more important matters of the law - justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
Clearly Jesus is letting us know that what we give priority to in our religion and ethics gives evidence of our heart in relation to God's heart. He elevates justice, mercy (translated variously as love, steadfast love, lovingkindness) and faithfulness. The consistency and continuity of the biblical message is striking, as here Jesus expresses the heart of God in language virtually identical to, for example, Psalm 89:14. The chesed / mercy and lovingkindness of God, His justice, His faithfulness, these character traits must lead and govern. The biblical ethic is not linear - it is not a list of rules - it is concentric, emanating from the heart of God.
In Luke 13, the religious authorities were more concerned with the Sabbath regulations than they were with the healing of a woman who had been sick for 18 years. Their concern with Jesus' disruption of their system and their status impaired their moral vision. It is an intrinsic risk of religious institutions to systematize and codify faith in ways that inhibit the flow of God's love through the people of God and into the world.
None of us would set out to be a hypocrite; but perhaps none of us avoid it, either. I, for one, am guilty.Though most of us are prone to selfishness, we do not intend to be hypocritical. Healthy people do not have an ambition to be two-faced. So how do we recognize hypocrisy in ourselves, and how do we lovingly confront it in others? I begin by seeking God, the wellspring of goodness, in honest prayer and meditation, and for concrete expression, observe and imitate Jesus, the example of love. I fear that we spend far too little time reflecting on the question of how we should live and too much time complaining and criticizing, or "defending our side." Jesus' prescription for hypocrisy is to humble ourselves. The NT writer James says that the hypocrite looks in the mirror and doesn't even know what he sees; by contrast, there is freedom in obedience. (James 1: 19-27)
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To bring to a conclusion our look at "New Testament vice lists" ...
This has not been so much of an in-depth look at the specific ethical issues described herein, but rather a big-picture, quantitative look at the New Testament as a whole. As pointed out, the collection of behavioral prohibition references exceeds 700, and there are about 125 Greek word families involved. We have covered the top eight topics, in order by the approximate number of references. This analysis could go on for some time, but I will choose to conclude this section by summarizing the remaining references.
The top "high profile" ethical directives not yet addressed include excessive drinking (approx 19 references), murder, hate (about 15 references each), anger, judging, and idolatry (each approximately 10 references), and there remain about 200 negative vice references of a general nature, addressing "wickedness" or "unrighteousness" or "ungodliness" or similar miscellaneous behavioral prohibitions. Deeper analysis is warranted for three groups of references unique to Jesus addressing denial / betrayal, being a stumbling block, and neglecting to help others (this category was included above under "greed"). These three groups of references include about 10-12 references each in the teaching of Jesus. (Everything is on a spreadsheet, available by request.)
This has not been so much of an in-depth look at the specific ethical issues described herein, but rather a big-picture, quantitative look at the New Testament as a whole. As pointed out, the collection of behavioral prohibition references exceeds 700, and there are about 125 Greek word families involved. We have covered the top eight topics, in order by the approximate number of references. This analysis could go on for some time, but I will choose to conclude this section by summarizing the remaining references.
The top "high profile" ethical directives not yet addressed include excessive drinking (approx 19 references), murder, hate (about 15 references each), anger, judging, and idolatry (each approximately 10 references), and there remain about 200 negative vice references of a general nature, addressing "wickedness" or "unrighteousness" or "ungodliness" or similar miscellaneous behavioral prohibitions. Deeper analysis is warranted for three groups of references unique to Jesus addressing denial / betrayal, being a stumbling block, and neglecting to help others (this category was included above under "greed"). These three groups of references include about 10-12 references each in the teaching of Jesus. (Everything is on a spreadsheet, available by request.)
Never forget that a New Testament ethic does not begin with "thou shall not," but begins with the positive admonitions to love God, to love others, and to demonstrate that love in concrete ways.
Image credit: https://www.wsj.com/articles/hypocrite-the-all-purpose-political-insult-1441320824